While most individuals know about
aspartame and its dangers, there is another, lesser known sweetener
in the food supply that many people donít know about -
Neotame.

Neotame - An
Unknown Artificial Sweetener Lurking in Your Food

Introduced by biotech giant
Monsanto, Neotame was created as a
new sweetener and flavor enhancer to be used in food products.

On July 9, 2002, the United States Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) decided that Neotameís safety and
functionality made it
available for consumption, thus resulting in
its approval. Whatís concerning is, while Neotame has a similar
structure to aspartame, the chemicals used in its manufacturing
process seem to make the sweetener even more toxic than aspartame.

Both aspartame and Neotame are made up of substances which
metabolize into a highly toxic poison known as formaldehyde. In
addition, they contain an exctiotoxic amino acid that agitates,
thereby damaging nerves.

Although very similar to aspartame in
chemical structure, Neotame has one chemical added that aspartame
does not possess - 3-dimethylbutyl, which just so happens to be on
the Environmental Protection Agencyís
most hazardous chemical list.

HolisticMed reports:

Neotame has similar structure to
aspartame - except that, from itís structure, appears to be even
more toxic than aspartame. This potential increase in toxicity
will make up for the fact that less will be used in diet drinks.

Like aspartame, some of the concerns
include gradual neurotoxic and immunotoxic damage from the
combination of the formaldehyde metabolite (which is toxic at
extremely low doses) and the excitotoxic amino acid.

The largest argument for the use of this
sweetener, as well as aspartame, is that they battle against
obesity, but it is well known that sweeteners like aspartame
actually
lead to obesity.

The worst part? Even if you wanted to avoid this sweetener, you may
find it impossible to do so. Not only are there
no labeling rules
for Neotame, but it is even included in the USDA certified organic
food.

So what is the solution? If you are trying to avoid Neotame, the
best thing to do is buy all organic items that have no or very
little ingredients. The less ingredients, the less chance Neotame
could be hiding out.